Glossary

Acupuncture

Acupuncture is one of the main forms of treatment in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). Practitioners of TCM see health as a state of harmony between mind, body and spirit. It is performed by inserting fine needles in the body at very specific points, stimulating the flow of the body's vital energy and functionality, known as Qi (pronounced 'chee ').

The goal of acupuncture is to clear away disruptions in the client's flow of Qi - an imbalance frequently experienced as illness or pain - and revitalizes the flow of energy in the meridians and organs. This process is believed to adjust and alter the body's energy flow into healthier patterns, and is used to treat a wide variety of illnesses and health conditions.

 

Acu-Tonics

The Acu-tonics healing system is an energy-based gentle treatment that is similar to acupuncture but without the use of needles. Instead, precision calibrated tuning forks are applied to specific acupuncture points to access the body's Meridian and Chakra energy systems. The sound waves of the forks vibrate and travel deeply into the body along energy pathways, stimulating and balancing the body's physical and subtle energy fields to promote healing and inner harmony.

Amenorrhrea

The absence, discontinuation or abnormal stoppage of the menstrual periods.

Assisted reproductive Techniques (A.R.T)

In vitro fertilization (IVF), Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), Intrauterine insemination (IUI), Ovulation induction and superovulation

 

Bach Flower remedies

Modern studies indicate that every human aliment can be influenced positively or negatively by an individual's corresponding emotional/mental condition. As such, they reveal that our susceptibility to illness, as well as our ability to recover from it, appears to be directly related to our attitudes.

Specially prepared flower essences, containing the healing energy of plants. They are prescribed according to a client's emotional disposition, as ascertained by the therapist, doctor, or clients themselves. This system originated in the 1920s when British physician and bacteriologist, Dr. Edward Bach (1886-1936), noticed that clients with physical complaints often seemed to be suffering from anxiety or some kind of negative emotion. He concluded that assessing a client's emotional disposition and prescribing an appropriate flower essence could treat the physical illness. Bach was a qualified medical doctor, but he also practiced homeopathy.

Bach Flower Remedies are a set of 38 different herbal remedies, each of which claims to rebalance a particular negative state of mind and promote well-being through vibration healing.

Cranio sacral therapy

A holistic healing practice that uses very light touching to balance the cranio sacral system in the body, which includes the bones, nerves, fluids, and connective tissues of the cranium and spinal area.

 

Cupping

Cupping is a technique used in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) for certain health conditions. Glass cups are placed on the skin with suction, which is believed to influence the flow of energy and blood in the body. Cupping should not be confused with the percussive technique in Swedish massage called "cupping" or "clapping."

Cupping is a safe, non-invasive, technique. It is used by practitioners of Chinese medicine to treat colds, lung infections, and problems in the internal organs. It is also used to treat muscle and joint pain and spasms, particularly in the back. Cupping can be used on people for whom the injection of acupuncture needles poses a problem or risk. Cupping therapy is thought to stimulate blood circulation.

Dysmenorrhea

Difficult and painful menstruation.

 

Electro Meridian Imaging (E.M.I.)

Electro Magnetic Imaging, E.M.I., is a safe, painless and effective way of electronically measuring the efficiency of the body's nervous system.

"The procedure is easy and painless and is appropriate for clients of any age."

E.M.I. is a modern version of the Chinese technique known as "Ryodo-Raku". By measuring the electrical resistance of 24 specific Nerve/Meridian points, this test is capable of identifying functional imbalances related to the body's nervous system.

Information is gathered by taking measurements from points on the wrists, hands, ankles and feet. The skin is lightly contacted with a moist cotton tipped instrument and numerical readings are made at each location.

This is a completely non-invasive, non-needle procedure. The small amount of electrical energy needed to perform this test is well below human perception. The procedure is therefore completely painless and safe.

Numerical values are then entered into our E.M.I. computer program, where database calculations result in the generation of a detailed graph, chart and report.

This information correlates the function of specific nerves, their associated organs and the potential diseases and conditions that can result.

At Acubalance Wellness centre we have found that the information obtained through the use of E.M.I. is valuable in the evaluation, treatment and management of chronic and acute conditions of all types

 

Emotional Freedom Technique - EFT

EFT is a form of "emotional acupressure." EFT works by removing the negative emotional component from a memory, event, circumstance or situation. As all negative emotions are a disruption in your body's energy circuits, using this technique removes distress within your body, profoundly and pleasantly affecting attitude, perception, and health.

 

Electro-acupuncture

Electro-acupuncture, the application of a pulsating electrical current to acupuncture needles as a means of stimulating the acupoints, was developed in China as an extension of hand manipulation of acupuncture needles around 1934. It is described, though only briefly, in most comprehensive texts of acupuncture (1-4). The procedure for electro-acupuncture is to insert the acupuncture needle as would normally be done, attain the qi reaction by hand manipulation, and then attach an electrode to the needle to provide continued stimulation. The benefits of using electrical stimulation are:

It substitutes for prolonged hand maneuvering. This helps assure that the client gets the amount of stimulation needed, because the practitioner may otherwise pause due to fatigue. Electro-acupuncture may also help reduce total treatment time by providing the continued stimulus. During electro-acupuncture, the practitioner can attend to other clients. It can produce a stronger stimulation, if desired, without causing tissue damage associated with twirling and lifting and thrusting the needle. Strong stimulation may be needed for difficult cases of neuralgia or paralysis. It is easier to control the frequency of the stimulus and the amount of stimulus than with hand manipulation of the needles.

 

Herbal medicine

Chinese herbal medicine is the substantial counterpart to the energetic medicine of acupuncture. Many treatments for internal disharmonies or chronic conditions can greatly benefit from the use of Chinese herbal therapies.

There is a growing body of research, which indicates that traditional uses of plant remedies and the known pharmacological activity of plant constituents often coincide. However, herbal medicine is distinct from medicine based on pharmaceutical drugs. Firstly, because of the complexity of plant materials it is far more balanced than medicine based on isolated active ingredients and is far less likely to cause side effects. Secondly, because herbs are typically prescribed in combination, the different components of a formulae balance each other, and they undergo a mutual synergy, which increases efficacy and enhances safety. Thirdly, herbal medicine seeks primarily to correct internal imbalances rather than to treat symptoms alone, and therapeutic intervention is designed to encourage this self-healing process.

Infertility

Infertility is a disease of the reproductive system, in either a male or a female that inhibits the ability to conceive and deliver a child. Infertility is commonly measured as the inability to conceive after one year of trying with unprotected intercourse.

 

Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI)

Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) is a specialized form of IVF that is used for the treatment of severe cases of male factor infertility. ICSI involves the injection of a single sperm directly into a mature egg.

 

In Vitro Fertilization (IVF)

IVF involves taking eggs from the woman, fertilizing them in the laboratory with her partner's sperm and transferring the resulting embryos back to her uterus (usually 3 or 5) days later.

 

Intrauterine insemination (IUI)

Intrauterine insemination- is performed by threading a very thin flexible catheter through the cervix and injecting washed sperm directly into the uterus.

 

Menopause

Cessation of menstrual cycle

Often incorrectly viewed as a "disease", menopause is often treated with potent artificial hormones, sometimes with serious side effects. TCM and other cultures throughout the world view this transition as a natural, even revered process. TCM provides natural therapies to allow the transition to be smooth and uneventful for the woman entering her "wisdom" years.

Motor Point Acupuncture

Generally speaking, when muscle contraction takes place, the agonist - the primary muscle doing the movement - shortens in length in order to pull the muscle and create movement. On the other hand, the antagonist - opposing muscle -lengthens in order for the agonist muscle to create the movement.

When a client's structural balance has been altered, whether by lack of exercise or repetitive use for example, there is an imbalance created between the forces of the two muscles. This imbalance usually results in a difference in the range of motion. This predisposes the musculoskeletal system to injury and soreness.

Acupuncture to the motor points seems to "reset" the dysfunctioning muscle spindles and corrects the abnormal muscle function, ultimately balancing the agonist and antagonist muscle groups.

Moxibustion

Moxibustion is a technique used in traditional Chinese medicine in which a stick or cone of burning mugwort , Artemesia vulgaris, is placed over an area on the body. The purpose is to stimulate and strengthen the blood and the life energy, or Qi, of the body. It has gained popularity for its ability to turn breech babies when used over an acupuncture point on the expectant mother's baby toe.

 

Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP)

NLP is a technique that shows people how to change or "reprogram" their thoughts, feelings, and actions by simple mental exercises.

In the areas of medicine and health care, NLP can help people discover the unconscious negative thought patterns they have about their illnesses and help them to change their mental and emotional responses so that they reinforce the positive, healing process

Ovulation Induction and Superovulation

Women whose ovulatory problems have not responded to simpler medications (such as clomiphene tablets) become candidates for ovulation induction therapy with injectable fertility medications. Injectable fertility agents are used to increase the number of eggs produced in each cycle thereby, maximizing their chance of conception.

 

Pre-conception period

The period of time before conception to prepare your body for pregnancy. The amount of time varies, but it is preferred if both the partners involved in conception allow for at least 3 months.

 

Premenstrual Symptoms (PMS)

A combination of emotional, physical, psychological, and mood disturbances that occur in women after ovulation and normally end with the onset of the menstrual flow.

 

Qi or Chi (pronounced "chee")

Qi is a concept at the heart of Chinese Medicine. The term is used to describe the vital energy which flows through your entire body in invisible lines of energy called meridians. Qi flows smoothly when you are healthy.

 

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)

Developed in Asia over 4,000 years ago, Traditional Chinese Medicine is an ancient medical system based on the belief that the human body is a system where the energy - commonly referred to as "Qi" - moves through channels called meridians, each of which includes acupuncture points.

The root of TCM lies within the concepts of Yin and Yang. Originally meaning the shady and sunny sides of a mountain, Yin and Yang are emblems of the fundamental yet ultimately unified duality in the universe.

What is referred to as illness by Western medicine is considered in traditional Chinese medicine to be a matter of disharmony or imbalance. TCM views health as a state of harmony between mind, body and spirit. Thus disease is viewed as a state of imbalance - the cause of disease as an upset in the balance of your body and a disturbance in the flow of Qi. TCM practitioners identify patterns of imbalance, which lead them to diagnosis and treatment, correcting the flow of Qi.

TCM treatments typically involve combinations of acupuncture, herbal remedies and lifestyle & diet counseling. These forms of treatments are based upon beliefs that differ from the disease concept favored by Western medicine.

Although there are various schools of thought among practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine, five Taoist axioms form its basis:

• There are natural laws which govern the universe, including human beings.
• The natural order of the universe is innately harmonious and well-organized. When people live according to the laws of the universe, they live in harmony with that universe and the natural environment.
• The universe is dynamic, with change as its only constant. Stagnation is in opposition to the law of the universe and causes what Western medicine calls illness.
• All living things are connected and interdependent.
• Humans are intimately connected to and affected by all facets of their environment.

 

Tui Na

Tui-Na is an oriental form of bodywork or massage that uses many forms of manipulation to directly influence the flow of Qi in the body, establishing a more harmonious flow of Qi through the system of channels thus allowing the body to naturally heal itself.